'No Flood Insurance Required' as a Selling Point

'No Flood Insurance Required' as a Selling Point

Daily Real Estate News |
Monday, October 21, 2013

Amid skyrocketing flood insurance hikes, the homes that are unaffected are in hot demand.

In Florida for example, some real estate professionals are attaching riders to their for-sale signs that say “no flood insurance required.” They're also promoting the message on online listings and magazine ads to entice home shoppers.

"It's a big, big selling point," Nancy Driver, a Hofacker Homes real estate professional, told Tampa Bay Times. "People driving the streets to pick the area they want will know it's on there for a reason."

This fall, the Biggert-Waters Act began the process of removing and reducing federal subsidies for flood insurance on more than a million homes nationwide. It has caused premiums for flood insurance to skyrocket in some areas, which has reportedly deterred some buyers. Depending on the home’s value and its flood risk, the increase in premiums could range from $3,000 to $33,000, The New York Times recently reported.

In the coastal and inland neighborhoods of Tampa Bay, Fla., rising insurance rates potentially could impact more than 50,000 homes. Real estate professionals are sharing premium stubs, insurance quotes, and elevation certificates that are used to calculate rates to help offset the shock of the rising costs, the Tampa Bay Times reports. Hence, homes that don’t need flood insurance are particularly in demand right now.

"Most of the buyers right now are saying, 'Only show me places that aren't in a flood zone,’" says Debra Bellmaine, a Stonebridge Real Estate professional.